


Dream

by a_cascade



Series: Crimson Days 2020 [2]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Crimson Days, Drabble, Ficlet, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Memory Loss, Romance, guardian!Uldren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:22:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22722394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/a_cascade/pseuds/a_cascade
Summary: Jolyon teaches a newly risen Uldren about the human tradition of Crimson Days.
Relationships: Uldren Sov/Jolyon Till the Rachis
Series: Crimson Days 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1630171
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27





	Dream

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! Enjoy!

The man called Jolyon took him by the hand and led him into the Gardens of Esila. It was a place straight out of a dream. He couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face as he walked forward, now leading Jolyon. He stopped to admire a cluster of flowers, all deep red, their petals tightly bunched together. He picked one and presented it to his companion. Jolyon’s smile was radiant. He rather liked it when Jolyon smiled.

“There’s a custom on Earth where humans celebrate their love for one another,” Jolyon told him. He squeezed his hand and looked down at the ground, suddenly overcome with bashfulness. “They call it the Crimson Days.”

“And what does one do to celebrate the Crimson Days?”

“Well, they spend time together with their loved ones and give them gifts.” Jolyon took the rose from Uldren with a smile and raised it to his nose. He threaded his fingers through Uldren’s. “Now you’ve given me a gift.”

“What is this place?” Uldren asked. A winged insect flew past, shimmering as it flew through a column of sunlight. He stopped, his eyebrows furrowed. There was a strange feeling within him, on the fringe of familiarity and perplexity. Jolyon ran his thumb over his knuckles, something he often did when Uldren was distressed or confused.

“These are the Gardens,” Jolyon said. “You and I came here many times in the past.” He would answer any of Uldren’s questions if he was able to. He had never kept secrets from him in the past and by no means would he do so now.

“So you knew me then?” He was almost afraid to ask, not knowing what sort of person he had been. He feared the worst. He couldn’t ignore the stares, the whispers from the Corsairs, the glares from the Risen whenever he was near. He had been killed several times by both. He knew it didn’t bring his assaulters the reckoning they sought when they knew he would always come back. Sometimes he wished he could give it to them. From the moment he had woken up he had felt so utterly alone. Until he met Jolyon. He didn’t treat Uldren like he was some monstrous thing risen from the dead to once again unleash hell upon the world he had left behind. He had only ever shown him patience.

“I knew you better than anyone. Or, at least, I thought I did.” Jolyon stroked his cheek with the back of his free hand when he shamefully looked away, drawing his eyes back to him. He wore a sad smile, but his eyes were gentle. “It’s in the past now. You don’t even remember it.”

“I still feel responsible, no matter what it is I’ve done.” Uldren squeezed his hand, his eyes pleading. “I want to make it right.”

"You will. I believe someday your deeds will outshine all of it."

“But I don't want what I've done to be forgotten. I want people to see what I once was and how I've changed.” He knew very little about his past, save for what Jolyon had told him. He knew it was painful for the man to speak about those memories. "And so I must ask, who was I to you? How can you show me such kindness, knowing what I’ve done?” Uldren watched as the smile faltered on Jolyon’s face then fell away completely.

Jolyon stepped closer, his hand slipping onto his waist, close enough that Uldren could see the trails of light dancing beneath his skin, could count every single one of his eyelashes if he desired to. He was a tall and sinfully handsome fellow. Something about him drew Uldren in from the very first moment he saw him in this new life. Uldren’s lips parted, but every word he tried to muster died in his throat. His heart thudded in his chest. What was this feeling?

"I saw what you became after Riven’s influence changed you. In the end, you didn’t even recognize me. Even in the Black Garden you’d never looked so lost. I never want to see you like that again." Jolyon’s voice dropped to a hushed whisper. “I’m doing this because I remember who you were before you succumbed to darkness. I remember the man who would've sacrificed everything for his people. I remember my hero, my friend, my prince.”

Uldren didn't even register that he was being kissed until his back hit the ground, cushioned by a bed of grass and wildflowers. Jolyon’s kisses felt like cool rain on his heated skin, like a break of sunshine between the clouds on an overcast day, like starlight, like safety and coming home, sweet to the last swipe of his tongue, the last nip on his lower lip, the last gasp, and when Jolyon cupped his face in his hands and leaned in for more, Uldren knew everything would be all right.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Feel free to drop by and say hi to me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/cleverly_not) or [Tumblr](jes-jones.tumblr.com).


End file.
